MBB: NESCAC

Started by cameltime, April 27, 2005, 02:38:16 PM

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nescacfan33

Let this be the biggest preseason news of the NESCAC season....this is from a very reliable source, Wes fans should be devastated as of what I have heard dominant big man (prob would have been the best center in the league this year) is out for the season due to academic reasons.  As of what I know, he will be back for next year (2006-07) to finish his schooling and bball eligibility, but is out for the entire year in 2005-06. What a shock for the Cards!! I thought they might be a top 4 team, maybe a possible contender with Kelly and guard Ashe leading the way. It gets worse though. I also have heard from a less reliable source that Ashe, who sprained his ankle against Amherst or Trinity, not sure which one, actually did more damge than originally believed. He only missed 3 or 4 games and came back for the last few last season, and he did actually look very good in the playoff game against trinity last season, though he had a very large brace on. Anyways, supposedly he ruptured a ligament in his high ankle and is having or already had surgery. He might be out for both his soccer and bball seasons!! is going to be tough to see these Cards finish higher than 7 or 8, maybe even slip out of the playoffs. Ashe is a great guard, one of the most explosive in the NESCAC, i saw him drop 20 on the Lord Jeffs at Lefrak and score 15 against Williams when they came back to beat Williams at home. He is aruguably the best two sport (soccer)athlete in the NESCAC, so if he is gone as well as Kelly, it is DEEP trouble for the Cards. They will have solid guards and a couple good sophs after decent freshmen seasons. But, if they lost just one of those two guys, as Kelly averaged 16 ppg and 10 boards while Ashe had like 11and was among league leaders in steals and assists,  even Conn Coll and Middlebury will beat them this year. Still, if Kelly and Ashe are back for 06-07, maybe it will work out in the end. WESCARDS04, other wes fans, if ur out there let me know if u know any of this or something more??

nescacfan33

Well, got some more info. Rob Kelly, going to be a senior, is definitely ineligible. He is only going to be back in 06-07, if allowed to reenroll at school. Jerod Ashe, only a Junior, and his injury is not for sure. Just what I had heard. They would be SOLID if both are there in O6-07, but who knows. Too bad for wesleyan bball after a surprisingly decent year.

John Halas

Best two sport athlete in the NESCAC is Mike Blair from Trinity.  All-Nescac in football, 3 time All-America in wrestling.  No contest.  No offense to Ashe, but he wouldn't have been top 3 two sport athletes at Trinity.  Aaron Goldstein (football, baseball, and 1 basketball season) and Jeff Natale (hockey and baseball) are ahead of him as well.

jeff williams

While we're at it, Williams has three strong candidates as well:

Chris Kenney, who was first team all-nescac catcher as a first-year, and was Williams' starting football center as a Sophomore.  By the time he is a Senior, he will likely be a two-sport all leaguer.  Also Dana Leary -- already first-team all Nescac in soccer as a Sophomore, and a key contributor in basketball despite starting the season late.  He'll probably be sixth-man in hoops this year and a starter as a senior.  Also watch out for Nick Fersen, who was a strong football and lacrosse contributor as a first-year.  

Of course, if Tyler Rhoten ever chose to play football, he would blow the competition away, considering he was recruited as a tight end by Syracuse.

nescacfan33

Halas,

Well take a step back. I will definitely give you Mike Blair as being the best, I actually forgot to mention him, wrestling can often stay under the radar. And Goldstein actually probably as good as Blair as well this year. Saw Goldstein in football, but not baseball. He was good. But does Natale even play hockey still? I saw a trinity NCAA hockey game, i dont think he was even out there?? Let me know, but i think natale only plays one sport, so i think u were a little off there. Anyways, it is an interesting argument but I was thinking in terms of guys that are still going to be playing next year, not already done with their careers so sorry to not have clarified that...For guys coming back to the NESCAC next year, no graduates, Ash would be my pick along with Dana Leary from Williams as the top two sports athletes in the conf. And Jeff Will, you are certainly right about Rhoten and his decision on not playing football. What a scary athlete he is!!!! Do you know why he decided not to try both??

(Message edited by nescacfan33 on August 11, 2005)

John Halas

Natale stopped playing hockey his junior year to focus on baseball.  He had led the team in scoring his sophomore year and was his junior year until he stopped playing.  He was then drafted by the Red Sox and is batting around .320 for the Single A Greenville Bombers.  As for Tyler, he just wanted to play basketball and I don't blame him.  He's one of the best scorers I've ever played with at any level.  And he probably would be the best two sport athlete if he chose to do so.  
As for the guys coming back, Ashe definitely agree with...as long as he's healthy.  But #1 is still Mike Blair without question.  Did I mention he was All-Nescac his first year in track & field as well.  The kid is a monster.

nescacfan33

Wow, wish I saw Blair wrestle or run. All I saw was a football game where he and Goldstein were very very GOOD. Good luck to Natale with baseball as well. Three great athletes. And yea, wonder what Rhoten is thinking of doing after he graduates this year. Playing overseas somewhere? Later Halas.

John Halas

To clear things up, Blair threw the shot.  Tyler has a lot of options after this year, but he won't be thinking about any of it till after the season.  He's the type of kid who focuses on one thing at a time.  And it's his turn for NESCAC POY, he's arguably one of the best scorers ever in the conference.  I'm looking forward to seeing those guys play this year, should be a lot of fun.

jeff williams

John, any insight into how much of an impact Pat Martin will make as a transfer to the Div-III level?  If he is a superstar, Trinity will be the conference favorite, if not, Amherst still has the most talent returning.

John Halas

Pat Martin is a very good player.  I played with him a few times when he was still in high school and he could've played with us then.  Trinity will have a lot of talent again, as we did last year.  I think the guys coming back will know what its like to play with a target on their back, which is very difficult.  I hope that they do better than we did last year.

Bob Holdcamp

John,

Can you shed an insight on why the season turned out the way it did for you guys?  I know expectations were high, but it seemed like you guys never put it together.  I'm an alum and watched a few games and from my seat, it didn't seem like there was a commitment on the defensive side of the ball.  Also, does Stan tell Tyler specifically never to foul anyone?  I know he can score but he doesn't even try on D.

Anyway, love to hear your thoughts.

John Halas

Every team has their troubles throughout the season, we didn't have any more than the next team but for some reason we just didn't finish every game.  We lost 7 games, 5 of those were by 3 points or less.  A couple of those we had the lead in the last minute or so.  A few missed free throws by myself in the final game, along with a terrible team performance from the line against WestConn made our season look a lot worse than it really was.  It was also tough for a lot of the guys when our starting lineup was completely changed during the middle of the season.  I can't get into why it happened, that's strictly a team issue.  But we had a lot of distractions this year as opposed to my junior year.  I still wouldn't have changed my experience for anything.

ephoops

Pat - I like the new look.  Good job.

formerbant10

Cameltime, unless Conn is bring Tatum back, they're gonna need a whole lot more from Charles Stone than 4 pts and 2 rebs against Trinity.  2-12 won't cut it against anyone.  To put him in the same sentence as Tyler is absurd IMHO.

formerbant10

Who is the front runner for POY?